Get Inspired – The Top Influences Every Job Seeker Needs to Follow | Career Development

You spend hours, days even, looking for the perfect opportunities, researching workplace cultures, tweaking your resume, and following up. Despite all of that work, the odds of landing your dream job seem slim. In fact, only two percent of applicants are called for an interview for the average job opening, according to research in a 2015 Glassdoor ebook.It’s hard to feel like you are in control of your career when you’re getting nowhere during the job search. Sometimes, you need to feel inspired and motivated.

This is where influencers come in.

Influencers are more than just trendy, Twitter accounts that post cliched, pie-in-the-sky motivational quotes. They deliver real value to their followers through insightful content and actionable advice.

Industry thought leaders can pull you out of the job search rut, no matter what type of job seeker you are:

The Entrepreneurial Spirit

To say that being your own boss is ‘in’ is an understatement. The trend of wanting to start your own company has skyrocketed.

In fact, a 2016 report by the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) found that an estimated 25 million Americans were either starting or running new businesses.

Entrepreneurial spirits are motivated to be their own boss one day. But the entrepreneurial journey is not easy.

Fortunately, there are a number of successful influencers to help you along the way:

Gary Vaynerchuk

What to Expect: Profanity-filled career and life advice. Vaynerchuk preaches simple bits of wisdom many professionals need to hear, especially if you want to be your own boss. His main takeaways are simple and actionable — be patient, develop your strong work ethic, and stop caring what others think while you focus on your passions.

Best Place to Follow: He’s active everywhere but start with his Instagram, which has more than three million followers. It’s a great introduction to his personality, and he incorporates a lot of his other content, like his podcast and vlog.

Want to be your own boss? Stay motivated by following influencers like @garyvee.Click To Tweet

Lewis Howes

What to Expect: From broke, injured football player to one of the most successful American entrepreneurs, Howes offers a wide variety of content focused on achieving ‘greatness.’

Best Place to Follow:His podcast, the School of Greatness, tops the charts with many downloads and high engagement. Start here to learn about his personality and listen to interviews with experts in health, relationships, entrepreneurship, inspiration, and business.

James Altucher

What to Expect: While he gets a lot of attention as a cryptocurrency expert, Altucher also writes about business. He provides general personal and professional development tips through his blog and his books, like Choose Yourself.

Best Place to Follow: He does it all, from public speaking, stand-up comedy, and podcasting to managing hedge funds and starting businesses. Follow his LinkedIn, where his high level of activity earned him a spot in the top 10 LinkedIn Influencers list.

The Hopeful Leader

No matter where you are in your job search and your career, you aspire to be a leader at a company someday.

Leadership skills are highly sought after, but they can take years of study and experience to develop. Get a jump on learning these skills by following these influencers:

Brendon Burchard

What to Expect: Live. Love. Matter. This sums up Burchard’s philosophy of leadership. He produces various kinds of content that centers on high performance and leadership advice.

Best Place to Follow:His YouTube vlog is engaging, and he’s very active there. However, his podcast and books can’t be missed. Plus, his Facebook has over five million followers.

Tony Robbins

What to Expect: Lots of clapping and jumping. Robbins is best known for his high-energy performance seminars, but he delivers a lot of excellent life coaching insights and performance tips in other areas as well, including his at-home training systems.

Best Place to Follow: Not only does he stand tall, but also he appears everywhere. His brand is active on various social channels, but his Facebook is the best place to stay informed about his latest content.

Richard Branson

What to Expect: Personal adventures, business insights, and career management advice. As a philanthropist, investor, and billionaire business magnate, Branson has a lot of thought leadership content to offer.

Best Place to Follow: He’s the second highest LinkedIn influencer because he’s very engaged through his profile. Also, his blog on Virgin offers consistent content, and his books are excellent, too.

Want to be a #leader? Learn from the best, like @TonyRobbins and @richardbranson.Click To Tweet

The Creative

One of the best skills to have in your job search and throughout your career is creativity. If you’re driven by outside-the-box thinking and thrive in creative problem-solving, you’re a creative type.

The problem is that creative jobs are often the most difficult to find. Learn how to spark your creativity and build a career that aligns with your inner artist by following these influencers:

Ryan Holiday

What to Expect: From Director of Marketing at American Apparel to best-selling author, Holiday offers a lot of wisdom in several domains. These include stoicism and philosophy, marketing and business, and productivity.

Best Place to Follow: He’s everywhere. He guest writes for several publications, most notably Thought Catalog, New York Observer, and Forbes. To get all his latest content, follow his Facebook page.

Fuel your #creativity by following some of the best thinkers, like @RyanHoliday.Click To Tweet

JP Sears

What to Expect: Humor and personal development advice. Starting as a life coach, Sears exploded online thanks to his hilarious and often insightful videos that help you become your best self.

Best Place to Follow: He’s best known for his YouTube videos, but he engages his followers on several other platforms, including Instagram and Facebook.

Don’t let the job search rut keep you stuck. Get inspired by and look for ways to better yourself as a professional every day.

What influencers do you follow to help with your job search and career? Share in the comments!